Dutch earthenware is represented in the collections of the world’s great museums, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, which has one of the finest holdings of Delft blue-and-white and polychrome ceramics in the United States. A selection of thirty-five of the most distinguished pieces from this remarkably comprehensive yet previously unpublished collection are presented here for the first time. This fully illustrated volume reveals the importance of Delft faience production in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, while highlighting the exceptional quality of the Museum’s collection.

Ella B. Schaap, Curatorial Associate for Dutch Ceramics at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, has written entries that describe the significant features of each object and set them in historical context. She has also provided an essay discussing the development of the Museum’s collection of Delft ceramics. Noted scholar Hans van Lemmen has contributed a lively, illustrated essay outlining the history of Delft ceramic production. A glossary of technical terms and a list of sources for further reading complete the book.